Green Ark
by Squinchmaster
Summary: An unexpected turn of events leads to intense training, new friends, and eventually a huge confrontation. New allies will help the straw hats to keep a promise. Rated "M" for fights later in story. Better description in chapter 1.
1. Chapter 1

Hello everyone I have a few things to go over before we embark on this adventure. 1) I do not own One Piece. 2) I am not the best with punctuation and my content can seem to run on at times, spare me the flames in your reviews if possible (you savages). If there is anything that is way off even for my content, go ahead and let me know I am willing to revisit and edit anything that absolutely needs it. 3) Any support or critiques are much appreciated. 4) This little guy right here "," is called a comma. These guys can ALSO represent a pause in speech. Keep that in mind when reading any of my works. It physically hurts me when people think I am so dumb I don't know where a comma goes. I like to write in a way that gives you an idea of how it would sound if you where actually hearing what is being said. 5) My style of narration is unique to say the least. Some points people will be speaking, and I will immediately cut from that to give you an idea of a situation or surrounding. Though this might seem odd I am a mad man with details and like to think I paint a pretty mean picture with words.

Now if you are still alive through that we can move on to some other bits I would like to explain, specifically the actual story itself. This particular work will be featuring some new characters and powers. There will be violence, strong language, drug reference/use (probably not what you are thinking so please stick through), and alcohol consumption. This might not sound like much for my rating but trust me shit is going to go DOWN. And now with no further stalling lets get on with the show!

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~Intro~

The straw hat pirates have made it to the new world and decide to restock some supplies on an island housing a quiet little kingdom named Thir (Pronounced Th-ear) before their next real stop on their adventure. Meanwhile a notorious pirate has the same idea, but what could this mean for the straw hats?

Chapter 1 ~ Stow Away ~

The straw hats, all accounted for, head into port. The massive "All welcome in Thir" sign seemed inviting enough to merit using the public docs instead of taking a detour to remain anonymous. Despite some scared crew members objections Luffy gave the command and so they docked at the public port. Nami went to get some recent pillaged goods appraised and sold while Sanji, Chopper, and Franky went grocery shopping. Luffy fallowed in hopes of nabbing some food along the way and everyone else more or less explored for a couple of hours trying to soak in some of the peaceful atmosphere and in Robbins case culture and history. There didn't seem to be any upcoming events or major crime happenings recently. There was royalty but from the looks of things they didn't seem to enjoy a lavish lifestyle, even compared to the citizens as the palace was more like a large house with little to no visible exterior decorations. The one thing that stuck out on the island was the weather. It was a spring island making them an agriculturally economic community, accounting for over 15% of all produce in trade in the new world. Almost everyone had a large field growing some kind of spring time crop, with the exception of local fisherman.

The day seemed long, because it was (18 hours of daylight a day) and it never got dark enough to even change the temperature. for this reason everyone was beyond late back to the boat, but where readying to leave the next morning. Everything was quiet up until morning when Nami woke up early to tend to her trees. As she neared her miniature mangrove she couldn't help but hear faint talking, as if someone where having a conversation in the middle of her trees. She sneaked around fallowing the voice but couldn't find anyone no matter how hard she tried. The voice seemed to stop halfway through the search so she assumed the culprit had fled. Not to throw caution to the wind she did bring this to attention when the rest of the crew sat at breakfast. Despite a quick thorough search nothing was to be found.

After breakfast Nami looked through some local sea charts to get a vague idea of their next location. "To Mave it is guys!" Their navigator yelled as they set sail. Robin read about Mave before and told them what she knew. "Mave is the territory of the Cook brothers. They took the island despite it being a barren wasteland of war leftovers. It was nick-named "Death Alley" for the many climactic battles that took place there through history. I heard rumors that the Cook brothers are amassing a fortune by any means they can. Rumors include drug selling, hit man jobs, bounty collection, weapons manufacturing, and even slavery. Even pirates are uneasy around them so only people in the right ranks deal directly with them on their own turf. Nobody knows why they are building such a fortune either but those rumors are even more imaginative themselves. The last time an emperor of the new world was notably defeated was by the Cook brothers, having defended their island from Kaido sustaining few casualties. They each have their own unique separate crews. Dewgrad's "Ram" pirates, and Bubbers "Garden" pirates. Each with their own respective ranks. I hope nobody dies while we are there." Her last words shook Chopper and Usopp and got a laugh out of Brook and Luffy. It would be another day before they reached Mave and it wouldn't be until noon.

Early the next morning Nami woke up and went to check on her trees again. This time an arm halted her at the door. She knew Robin must be up to something so she sat in anticipation. Robin had grown an ear in the trees so she could eves drop on their stowaway. She finally managed to pin its origins and grew an ear much closer so she could actually listen to what he/she was saying. It was a mans voice. It sounded calm and even inviting, but also soft and almost whisper like in volume. He spoke, "...So then Luffy did what? Amazing. Fighting underwater despite having a devil fruit is astonishingly difficult you know. And how did he... Oh bother. I guess I should turn myself in then. It seems rather rude to hitch a ride and not even introduce myself doesn't it?" Back to Nami, the arm turned to petals and Nami rushed the deck. Everyone was standing face to face with their intruder. He was a six foot tall thin built man with thick curly hair that formed a poof much like an affro but thicker curls. He wore sweat pants, an open tropical island theme button up shirt, and sported a large pipe in his left hand. His arms where up like a person turning himself in would do to gesture that no violence is needed. He was barefoot as well witch seemed odd. His eyes changed color with every blink, and he seemed to be fighting the urge to cough. And again he spoke, just as calm as before. "Hello Straw hat pirates My name is Bubbers D Cook. (He then lights and takes a puff off his pipe, and returns to his position of surrender) I over heard you where headed for Mave so I tagged along. i would have just headed back on my own but I got lost in the stories your trees have been telling me about your travels and I have to admit I am a bit of a fan. they speak very highly of Nami in particular."

Zorro pulled a sword on him and demanded, "What do you mean the trees have been telling you stories?" And still smiling with his hands to the air he answered in a still polite tone, "Oh my apologies. You see I ate the wood-wood fruit and now I can talk to plants. I can grow plants and I myself am made of wood!" He knocked on his chest producing a similar sound you would hear knocking on an empty chest or a table to prove his claim before continuing, "It is to my understanding that you are headed for MY territory. So if you prove good company I will allow you to stay until your pose is set. I can personally guarantee your safety during the entire duration of your stay as long as you don't pick any major fights or destroy anything irreparable. (His face begins to visibly twitch in irritation) My apologies but I have a condition called Bipolar disorder. We in the cook family share this trait. I might snap at you but I assure you I mean nothing by it. Could we maybe start steering the boat please? I don't want to keep Dewgrad waiting. His temper is much worse than mine.

So Luffy giggled and invited Bubbers in while they continued on their way. There where some uneasy looks coming Bubbers way the entire trip. Its not every day you have a stow away, and even more so one that can fight off an emperor of the new world. At lunch Bubbers told them about Mave and his crew. "Me and my brother Dewgrad found this island and I knew I had to claim it as one of my own because of the minerals in the soil. Alone they are worthless but with the right adjustments it would become the most fertile land possible. Which I need for my powers to thrive. And so it did. Now it is thriving. Our defense includes a massive wall surrounding the entire island and with my abilities I can easily weaponize it. The island itself is thick with trees until the center most half where my settlement is. There is a good amount of workers who tend the fields while I am gone but when I am there I can grow them much faster provided I have enough soils to keep the land fertile and more so how much water has been made for me. That's why I visit Thir often. My ability literally triples the amount of withering done to the soil though so I am careful, only taking a fraction of the minerals I need from each island I visit. Thir fertilizes their land better than anyone else and for that reason I can visit once every year!"

Robin questioned what crops they specialized in to receive an interesting response. "Well our two top money makers are honey and (Puffs on pipe) marijuana. I know you have heard the rumors about drug trade among my crew and it is true to some degree. I only sell marijuana though. The honey is produced by a fellow crew mate of mine who can produce bees from his hands like a hive. The honey has a strong pain fighting effect while not sharing the obvious down sides of narcotics. The marijuana is just good business. It sells almost three times better than the honey due to how cheap I can mass produce it and how cheap I can offer it for. I grow it all myself personally to ensure no impurities. Also my devil fruit plants have augment-able compositions and properties resulting in different uses for my crop. I grow a wide variety of different kinds for all different consumers. There's some for helping you sleep, or staying awake, or relaxation, or focus, or nausea, or heartburn, or hangovers, or joint pain, or lung problems, the list goes on. I figured if I'm going to use my powers for profit I might as well do so as safe and fast as possible. Sadly drugs are massively more valued than the herbs and medicines I can produce. (Puffs pipe) It also massively helps our Bipolar disorder. But only my private stash does that. And if anyone else smoked this shit right here (gestures to his pipe) I hope they don't have plans for the next few days because it's potent to whole new degree."

After what seemed like only minutes of his stories they arrived at their destination of Mave. As they neared the wall it occurred to them that there was in fact NO entrance at all. As they approached Bubbers raised his hand and waved, making the wall of wood open. as they neared it, they realized even more just how massive it was. The wall went up so high the clouds could high five the top. And the wall was an impressive one hundred feet thick. As they awed while passing the gate hole he opened for them, he said "Yeah that shit is devil fruit wood too. You could beat that bitch for DAYS and do nothing to it. And even if you did, it automatically rebuilds itself very fast. When I am here I can make it whatever wood I want. So naturally I make it manchineel wood. Which is basically a kind of wood that bleeds poisonous corrosive sap that turns into toxic fumes over time after being exposed to the air. And if you burn it the smoke WILL permanently blind you. Pretty much the only person who ever braved the shit was Kaido. His ass is like a god damn tower that breathes. Fucker took NINE DAYS to beat unconscious. Mind you it took me and Dewgrad. Still lost a few good men in that fight. Q Co, Andy, and Sara. Can't expect to face a man like that and not lose at least a few. Ah here we are let me show you the way to the settlement. The forest will eat you if I don't..."

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Well there you go let me know how you feel guys. Expect more soon. And don't worry I wont give you an essay long intro every chapter.


	2. Chapter 2

Well hello! here is another delicious chapter for you to read! In this chapter bonds form between the straw hats and the cook brothers crews. Many great things are in store for the straw hats. But power often comes at a price. And Bubbers asks a hefty price indeed.

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Chapter 2 ~Blue Ribbon Ties~

Luffy and company follow Bubbers through what looked like an endless forest. Bubbers told them the story behind these woods. "I call these the "Entish Guard" We currently have 4,700 Ent's stationed in a circle around our settlement. They are made from various different types of wood. This gives them unique powers in their own respects. Cherry Ent's can heal plants. Birch Ent's can split into smaller Ent's that are faster. You get the idea. They are astonishingly powerful because of my mastery over my devil fruit power. Nothing has made it past them by brute force except for Kaido. he killed 300 of them. I used to have 5,000 but not wanting to risk the rest I called them off. My devil fruit wood warriors have no soul or life of their own. they act on my orders alone. They aren't capable of fear, or love, or sorrow, or pity. They are not to be taken lightly. I made them in order to ensure my crews safety until I get back."

They made it to the end of the forestry after about 13 minutes of walking. The tree's where a sight to behold but the city was astounding. The city seemed to be target shaped by design. The outer ring being massive farmlands, the next ring in being a village, then large buildings, then a massive tree in the center. Bubbers pointed with a smile at the tree, "That is my place. I call her home. Boys welcome to Heartwood!" Awestruck the crew rushed the city after being told to congregate later at the big tree. There where no stores by the looks of things but there was an armory, a laboratory/water treatment plant, and a massive bar-n-grill. Zorro went to the bar to find the most massive amount of liquor a man could imagine at their disposal, and hence decided to cash in on their hospitality. Robin went to investigate the lab if possible accompanied by Franky. Nami, Usopp, and Chopper went to admire the fields, and Brook chose to socialize in the village a bit.

Zorro met a few well established members of the "Garden" pirates. 1 of them claimed to be one of the Blue Ribbons, the top tier of the garden pirate hierarchy bellow captain. Her name was Cindy Crook, a.k.a. "Cindy the Bulls-Eye" She has a devil fruit power that made her a target human. Now any projectiles she wishes are drawn to her body and absorbed, converting it into strength and stamina, or able to be fired from her palm at will with equal or greater force depending on projectile consumption up to said point that 24 hour time period. She claimed that when Kaido had his crew fire on the wall the projectiles flew strait up in the air and flew into her body. Meaning her ability has MASSIVE range. She was a shorter woman than most, with cherry red hair barely escaping her hat. She has freckles on her cheeks, wares a tank top with a target on the belly, and a hat with little puffy balls where ears would be. Her shoes where almost stilts they made her so tall, almost as if to compensate for her shortness in combat.

Brook met another "Blue Ribbon" in town. His name being Shawndore, a.k.a. "Shawndore the Mutilator" He walked on his hands, being a member of the long arm tribe doing so with relative ease. There is a tied knot where his legs should be. His arms themselves where unrealistically muscular and shook the ground on impact when he is walking on his hands. He claimed he fights by squeezing parts of peoples bodies off, throwing them, and beating them with their own limbs he severed. He lost his legs to torture before being saved by Bubbers. Bubbers helped train him into the high end fighter he is today. He holds the record for weight lifting in the entire crew, including Bubbers himself, Having lifted the big tree in the center of the city, and swinging it at Kaido in rage for killing the love of his life in front of him. And even doing so, he assured Brook that Kaido wasn't even ALMOST fazed by the attack, so he jumped at Kaido and Squeezed his chest with one hand and Yanked with the other, tearing a massive chunk of Kaido flesh off out of anger before being smacked against Kaido's chest by him, blocking the blow he still broke both arms but managed to hurt Kaido. So he keeps the now tanned chunk of Kaido Skin as a necklace, planning never to remove it until Kaido is dead by his own hands or at the very least the hands of a fellow crew mate or friend.

In the fields Nami, Chopper, and Usopp met another one of the Blue Ribbons. Tert Manifold, a.k.a. "Tert the Handy Man" He has no devil fruit power and fights using a decorative "Ultra Great Fork, and Ultra Great Wok" Witch are massive cooking wares as they sound. He says he fights people by using his massive wok as a shield and use the fork to stab people behind its cover, like a spear. He uses these weapons because he is the Chef of the crew and is more comfortable with cookwares. He hid under his wok and escaped harm from the Kaido attack. He did fight but is the weakest of their ranks and didn't want to get in the way later in the fight. Kaido struck the wok numerous times to no avail. All he did was make massive cracks in the earth. He could hear Kaido raging because of the laughter under the wok he was striking. the wok was being anchored by island roots, A specialty of Bubbers that anchors things to the ground with roots. Lifting the wok was even more impossible because of this than striking it. So even the weakest of the Blue Ribbon rank has strong enough Haki to fend of a Kaido slam fest, and even more so on a WOK!

Franky and Robin was allowed in the lab/treatment facility. The plant was ran by one of the elite Blue Ribbon class. She was Bubbers wife, Anastasia Elizabeth Sherri Belifold Cook, a.k.a. "Sweetness" She is not an elite fighting class, but rather at her position because of her Marriage with Bubbers. She is charged with the most important task on the entire island. Treating, adding minerals to, and displacing water for the crops and Bubbers personal consumption. She wasn't the most beautiful woman, being a little muscular from pipe working. Her skin was pale white and her hair was dirty blond wavy and shoulder length. She wore a pair of overalls and field boots. Why Bubbers would wed a woman of working class was beyond them until Robin questioned how the two met.

She smiled and told them their tale. "Oh I was working for the Navy treating water somewhere in the east blue, nothing important. And one day I find a man washed up on shore. He was dehydrated almost to the brink of death and barely drew breath. So I took him in and gave him water but he wouldn't wake up. I tried different foods and medicines and nothing helped he was still dehydrated. I noticed no matter how much water I poured down his throat his belly never even started to swell. So I built a large tower to store water in secrecy. When it was full I dumped every last drop down his throat. Finally he opened his eyes in tears. And he grabbed my arm pulling me closer in desperation gasping and panicking. He kept saying "Thirsty! Please more water! I Beg you!" Can you believe that? I poured a metric ton of water down this mans throat and he is still desperately thirsty. But I helped him. I made mineral water special for him. It keeps him hydrated MUCH better than normal water. And it's minerals that only plants would normally need like nitrogen and things like that. It took a month for his pleads for water ended. When I was on my way back with water one day for him I heard him. He was crying thanks to the gods for them giving him me. I was in tears. He was praising me. I mean well and true passionate thanks where uttered in my name. I never felt more appreciated. So I joined his crew, there where only us Blue ribbons back then and his brother. But then one day we where attacked by a powerful pirate who was our first real reality check back then. Bubbers was gone with Dewgrad getting more minerals. It was the first raid on our island and the reason why we made defenses. It was a rookie by the name of Caira. She had the power of sand. And she was just about to dry me out with her ability. I was so scared I cried help with the most guttural fear! I was about to die! But then I heard a smack. Bubbers was there and He looked madder than any of us have ever seen him. He turned his arm into a massive branch and smacked her in the face with all his strength. He definitely crushed her face bad. But I heard him yell so loud it shook the land. He yelled, "NOT HER! NOBODY TOUCHES HER!" He jumped at her again but Dewgrad restrained him. He knew she didn't kill anyone so he didn't want anyone to lose a life that day. And to no avail. He was still slowly making progress toward her. Dewgrad angrily tried to reason with him. But I finally got him to calm down. I hugged him and he fell to his knees embracing me. I felt his tears run down my back as he wept. "I love you. I will never let anyone hurt you as long as I draw breath. I promise it." It was then that I officially fell in love with him. We got married a year later with a proper wedding and everything. It was so lavish and beautiful. Anyway that's how we met and got married. He is shy about our love in public but he is passionate and kind and loving like nobody deserves. So I gladly make his drinking water and the water for our crew and fields. And he gave me the best protection of anyone on the island. This (pulls out a small bag) is a heartwood seed. It will grow Bubbers anywhere I plant it, making his current self a wooden idle instead."

Franky was in tears by the story. Robin was heart-warmed by it. She was very polite and intellectual, and it was clear she was lucky to have him. As was he to have her. Luffy was in search of meat. Finally ending up at the bar realizing that it was a grill as well. The food was almost as good as Sanji's too! But they eventually found their way back to the big tree. The interior was huge and roomy with no furniture or anything. The floor was dirt and there was a hole that lead to the sunlight in the ceiling. There was a throne that Bubbers sat at and next to it was a slightly bigger one where Dewgrad sat. Dewgrad was a massive muscular man wearing an open coat with bandages wrapped around his body. His body and face was covered in scars. His hair was thick, jet black, messy, and down to his lower back in length. Sitting next to him was a hammer almost as big as he is. He also wore pants that seemed to be made of pockets. Dewgrad with a bellowing deep voice spoke. "They all here? That's not a whole lot of man power..." Luffy Shot looks at him for that remark but was cut off. Again Dewgrad led "Oh well lets get on with it then. We understand that you are friends with a certain Shanks correct? Well we owe him a favor and he asked us to train you lot to repay it. The man said if we do good he will throw us a billion bucks too so we aim to do just that. Of coarse it takes you guys being willing. So here is the offer. We will teach you, collectively, the different forms of Haki. Even the really good ones. The rumor that only some are born with it is nonsensical propaganda brought on by the world government as a means of shackling the potential of would be uprisings. Everyone is born with at least one form of Haki it takes knowing how to train it and use it is all. So what do you say Luffy? Ready to become real pirate?"

Luffy thought for a second and finally answered. "If Shanks trusts you guys to do this, you must be the real deal. So I accept. We will stay but only for the least amount of time possible. We have the One Piece to find after all. But what is the price?" Bubbers puffed his pipe and passed it to Dewgrad and stood up to speak, "The price is money of coarse. When you find the one piece I want 15% of the gold you find. I want to make a pirate heaven here that is my dream. A safe place for pirates all over to come together in peace. I know for a fact that at least part of the one piece is a massive treasure hoard and I want a claim if we help you on the road to this greatness. Also the training will be hard it will take above all else determination. The training will take only 1 year. But it will be the hardest year of your life by far. No training could compare. Still up for it?" Luffy again without delay said yes. Everyone yelled at him "YOU WEREN'T EVEN PAYING ATTENTION!" And he giggled. But the next day they would be given their tasks. And the grueling training will begin.

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Well there you guys have it chapter 2. Leave a comment tell me what you think.


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry for the delay, but I am back at last! Training begins in this chapter.

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Chapter 3 ~Endurance Hell~

The crew was wide awake and followed orders to congregate in the fields early for training. Bubbers and a few normal farmers where present. Bubbers smiled and started off, "Today and for the next 3 months we begin your training on endurance. You may have fought for long periods of time, or had to endure long hours of work to get your job done. But this training is going to be the hardest by far. Nothing you have ever faced will try your patience, test your endurance, or break your spirit quite like this training. I choose this regiment first to weed out weaklings, forfeit and I cease training indefinitely for your entire crew. No exceptions. A chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and I do not tolerate training weak links. Everyone will train _their_ own unique skills, I pay attention to detail. Yours might not be as hard as Zorro training but make no mistake yours will be tailor fit to push _you_ to _your_ limit. For this reason you will be trained by members of my own crew and maybe a few of Dewgrad's dragoons will pitch in later. I ask for a simple reply. Nod yes or no. No questions. No prep. You have three seconds to reply together."

The entire crew nodded in delight. Bubbers sure talked a mean talk. A couple where worried about the months to come. But the decision was easy enough. Worse case you quit and move on. Everyone knew very well that Luffy would be ashamed if they did. So Bubbers smile grew larger now showing teeth. "Ok Usopp, you train with Cindy for the next three months. So do you Nami. Luffy and Sanji you train with me. Zorro and Brook you get to train with none other than Dewgrad. Franky and Robin you get to train with Shawndore. Here are some basic rules to abide by the next three months. You get 1 hour of sleep a day. During that hour of sleep you WILL be attacked by your trainer. I will give you a bag of seeds. These seeds will help you stay awake but the fatigue will remain. You get one meal a day. Witch is a bitter root vegetable I will provide. It will give you all the nutrients you need but you WILL NOT feel like you have eaten anything at all, and your hunger will remain. The rest of your regiment will be up to your specific trainer. This regiment is NOT detrimental to your health, but your body will scream otherwise. It is not until this anguish becomes second nature that you can begin to comprehend true endurance. This is called "Endurance Hell" and I wish you all luck. 1 more thing. If you ever defeat your instructor you get to go back to a normal sleep schedule, I will provide you a feast, and your training will be deemed complete, giving you a break until the three months are up. Chopper you may have noticed you didn't get an instructor. This is because you are the doctor of your crew. Your only training in endurance shall be caring for the injured. You still abide the sleep and eating rules all the same. And as a bonus if you manage to defeat any of the other trainers you get the same reward."

The straw hats nodded and parted their ways except for Bubbers and his trainees. Bubbers pointed chopper to the hospital where he would be staying, then turned to his eager trainees. "Alright your training will be easy enough. Every day you are to attempt to root me from the ground. If i so much as take a step you get the rest of the day off if you wish. Do not be fools and expect to defeat me. This will be the only saving grace at your disposal. Now we start." Luffy and Sanji smiled and charged full force. Sanji went for an axe kick while Luffy grabbed his legs and started to pull. The kick landed clean on Bubbers forehead and Luffy started his second gear. In a split second Bubbers chopped at them with one hand, flinging both of them away, the chop was so fast it caused a vacuum to form in its path sucking them both back in for another chop. This continued for fifteen seconds. The two where in bad shape. Not in too much pain but their spirit was broken a little. Then Bubbers giggled. "Ok nice effort. The kick was meant to stun me and ease my grip on the ground. Truth be told I haven't deployed a single root yet. All I had to do was cling to the ground with my toes. 1 head shots will never work on me, even my brain is solid wood. 2 yanking isn't the best way to root a tree. You have to cut it down and rip up the stump to ever have any hopes of doing so. my body while being small weighs just as much as all of the wood I have yet to grow at my disposal. now keep that in mind and come at me again." The two smiled and kept at it for the rest of the day.

Zorro and Brook met up with Dewgrad near the edge of the forest. Dewgrad was massive, intimidating, and boasted a massive hammer. He began to speak not breaking his stern serious expression, "You poor bastards where given me because you use swords. While this hammer isn't a blade it will prove your better time and time again. Your first task from me is to cut this tiny little diamond. Maybe not in half but a chip or a crack will do. You may have heard on your travels others asking if you could cut diamond. This is because of its stencil strength. Diamond is the literal hardest substance on earth. If you can't cut it, forget cutting through the best armament haki, which by the way dwarfs diamond. When you do we begin sparring and your task then is to avoid me for as long as possible without being touched. If I manage to touch you at that point, I will knock the wind out of you." Zorro was offended and lashed at Dewgrad. Dewgrad in a blink, was behind Zorro with two fingers gripping his sword. "Do not try me boy. Cut the diamond and then you can come for the big prize." Brook chuckled and got scolded but they continued their training as well.

Usopp and Nami found their trainer at a pond near the center of the island. Cindy looked innocent enough. She started will a warm smile, "Hi! I'm Cindy I'll be your trainer for the next three months. Your task will be locating and taking down at least two of the fifteen targets I set up every day. Fail and I will break a bone in your body. Nothing major just a rib or pinkie or something to get you going. If you hit all of the targets you are done with your training, and I will treat you to defeating me with no retaliation. And you know what that means. Lets go I already set them up while everyone was sleeping." Nami got a wicked idea and thunder tempo balled Cindy. But the lighting struck her in the stomach and nothing happened. "Oh yeah 1 other thing. I am your trainer because I am a target woman. I ate the target target fruit. No projectile attacks will ever work against me. Not lightning, not fire balls, not even light beams. You literally can't beat me." This angered Nami but the two went on their way. Having been so stressed over the bone breaking threat they only found 1 target that day. May god have mercy on their little fingers.

Robin and Franky found Shawndore atop a tree on the outskirts of town. He leaped down landing on his hands in a flashy quake. He had a massive smile across his face. "I am Shawndore! You where put in my hands because you fall under no defined specialty. I am the same. I can't cook, I can't read maps, I can't swing a sword for shit, and I sure aren't a sniper by any means. I am here to teach you how to endure given your quirks. Your task is going to be one of great difficult. Knock me out! That's right I WANT you to beat me. Simple as that. You can go by any means at all and as a bonus I will only ever attack you at night when I am obligated to. So think it out and come at me whenever you want I'll be lifting in the mean time. Good luck!" They began coming up with plans in secrecy until Franky caught glimpse of just what they where up against. Shawndore grabbed the base of a massive tree and plucked it like a weed in seconds. It was noisy as all hell and more than impressed Franky. But then it got worse. Shawndore did this to fifteen trees before bundling them with ropes. He then plopped down next to it and with almost just as much ease he began lifting with an even bigger smile. They spent that day watching him lift for 16 hours before a drink and food break. What a BEAST!

Chopper had it easy enough that day. But his job would get to be the worse soon enough. Crew mates would soon demand some way of easing their fatigue. This would also prove the most important job of all. Chopper had to study massage therapy and mix together relaxing oils. Every day this will continue almost non stop. And the cruelest thing is, the food they are given also makes it impossible to even sneak any more than an hour of sleep a day. The occasional splint for fingers would be needed for Nami and Usopp as well. Poor chopper will never even consider attacking a teacher either.

This continued for the three months as promised and whats better where the results. Zorro and Brook could now cut diamond and even managed to injure Dewgrad two times. Chopper could now operate on patients for hours on end no problem without even breaking composure. Luffy managed to better master his gear fourth form. And Sanji learned how to dodge and counter better than ever. Franky made many major additions to his artillery and Robin broadened her skills in strategy development. The two together where like an admiral and her army. Usopp finally mastered observation Haki and managed to locate 14 targets on the last day. Not realizing that the target on their trainers shirt was considered one of them. Nami made her weapon even more versatile and accurate at longer distances. And even better was now, no matter how long a fight pressed on, they would have the upper hand in Endurance. After sleeping and eating normal food again the crew cried in joy. Everyone even felt stronger. But the training isn't over yet. Nine months remained and nobody could possibly predict what they where in for down the road. But with the results they got from only three months, they only craved more.

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hope it was worth the wait! Let me know what you think if you wish! Looking forward to it!


	4. Chapter 4

Now things start getting exciting. The REAL story comes out here. There is much more to come as well so please do stick around. Enjoy!

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Chapter 4 ~ Teamwork ~

The endurance training has just ended and before their next trial in training begins the next day is going to be a break to recuperate. Little did the crew know it was a day off for more than just that reason. Bubbers had plans for that night. But one crew member was unable to sleep so they went wandering about. Everyone on the island seemed to be asleep so Robin figured it would be as good a time as any to go find some reading material. But she passed the big tree noticing the entrance had gone away. Curious, she went in to see what was going on. She eves dropped on some conversation going on inside and grew an eye inside to even better understand the situation. It was very dim and the room looked like a bedroom suite now. It was Bubbers and his wife. Bubbers was the first one she heard talking. "This is bad. After that last one, we're down 35%. If we are attacked like that again while Dewgrad is away..." His wife sat next to him, now obviously readying for bed, evident by the fact that she had on a night gown and slippers now. She rubbed Bubbers shoulder and leaned on him. "Don't worry honey. We have the straw hats here with us at least. They seem pretty reliable to me. And besides if I can talk him into it, I think Franky can help our water situation. It's worth a shot at least asking." Bubbers smiled and leaned on her head rested against his shoulder. "I don't know what i'd do without you. That's sounds like a splendid idea. I just don't want to chance turning into Quench Wood again. Last time, we lost blue ribbons before the water could be turned on. And now we have less manpower. I have faith in these lot too don't get me wrong, but those blue ribbons could smoke the whole lot of them in an instant, so what are they going to do if I get thirsty again?" His wife reached around his shoulder and gave him a big hug before whispering in his ear, "I love you. I know you'll do the right thing. And besides it's not like they really died."

The two began rolling around kissing and Robin decided that was enough. On her way back she found Dewgrad sitting by his self on a bench near the big tree. She joined him and out of curiosity she asked him, "Not to be rude, but what brings you out here by your lonesome?" But she received no response. Waving her hand in front of his face he snapped out of it and jumped a little. "What? Huh? Who's? Oh... I'm sorry seems I dozed off. What you need?" She smiled in a giggle fit. She had heard of people sleeping with eyes open before but this was the first time she had ever actually witnessed it in person. "I was asking why your alone out here this time of night." He stretched and yawned before answering, "Oh you don't know? You see my brother in there, he only sleeps after making love with his wife. And I mean that is literally the ONLY time he gets sleep. Tree's don't normally sleep but people still need it. And He is super protective of his wife. So I stay here and guard the tree when he is really tired. Tomorrow I go out for more treasure hunting while you guys return to training. I just wanted to make sure he got some sleep before I left is all."

Robin gave him a warm smile, "Oh how sweet! You must be the best brother out there." Dewgrad frowned and looked down at the ground. "I wouldn't go that far. You see he asked me to do this. And I owe him a lot more than just guard duty. Lets just say I messed up in the past and I'm trying to repay him for it. I do so by ensuring he sleeps, and has plenty of gold and jewels." Robin looked puzzled and Dewgrad noticing continued, "You see we aren't amassing gold and jewels for no reason. Bubbers power makes him able to take in minerals and turn them into plant matter, given he has enough water in his body to power the reaction. The better the minerals, the better the wood he can produce. His goal is to replace the entire wall and buildings with Chlorophyte. That is the hardest wood of all, only exiting in his power set. It requires loads of gold or gems to make a small amount of it. Currently he has enough to armor the big tree and that is where the normal citizens go when we are attacked. You can pull it out of the ground and swing it around all you want but no damage will be inflicted. It is impervious to ALL damage. But as you know money is hard to come by. So my job is taking money into kingdoms and buying as much jewelry and gold as possible for Bubbers to eat." Robin scooted closer to Dewgrad, knowing he is opening up to her she didn't want to pass the chance to learn even more about him. "But what did you do wrong? If you don't mind me asking. I'll even tell you a little of my past if you do." He sighed and after a long pause he finally told her. "I failed to turn the water spouts on the towers on in time. And that costed the bodies of a few blue ribbons." Robin, now even more puzzled now asked, "Bodies?" And Dewgrad looked at her in tears. "Bubbers can't help it. When he fights for too long he gets thirsty. And in that state he will drink ANYTHING. ANYONE. But when he drinks them against his will, he turns them into Thirst Wood's. Smaller versions of himself. They keep their powers and memories, even their skills and personality. But they are turned into wooden versions of their self. They can never get any stronger with training. They can never have children. And worst of all, they have to be kept underground most of the time for Bubbers to use his powers to keep them in normal conditions. Everyone on this island knows of these things and because of it they feel safe. Even in death, they can be spared if they choose. Getting to serve as the hidden most elite class of our crew. The spent blue ribbons."

Robin smiled at him and thanked him for his honesty. Giving him all the details about here life up until now. The two connected as friends and Dewgrad thanked her for her company promising her that he would give her 1 favor in return for her company. She left for bed finally, after getting some more sleep the crew woke up and went around enjoying the island on their day off. They where amazed by the results of their training thus far. They felt like they could jump to the moon after sleeping good again. Nobody could find Bubbers or his wife that day but They did wish Dewgrad a good voyage before departing on his massive ship "Divine Dragon." Witch dwarfed even navy fleet admiral level ships. It had decorative wings and the mast looked like fire with the Jolly Roger being a skull with curled bull horns and crossed hammers. The day went by fast and the crew made sure to get some sleep again not knowing what to expect the next day. But it turned out their training now was to work in teams. Every day they would be grouped in 2's or 3's and given tasks to work together on. They got normal sleeping schedules and everything. The training didn't even seem hard compared to the endurance training. But that was only BECAUSE they went through the endurance training to begin with. Dewgrad wouldn't return until the end of the training as well so they would have to help guard the island from harms way after month number 6. No attacks where made but they where expected to pull their own weight at this point.

At month 6 began the Haki training. This was a lot more labor intensive as well. Robin found out she had observation and a weak armament haki. Usopp has amazing observation haki and was working on covering his projectiles in armament but with little luck. Nami had A weather controlling kind of haki. And Chopper himself had observation haki. Franky was the only one not making gains it seemed in this respect. But it turns out his mind for machines is already a form of haki called insight haki. Their training was going to be fierce from now on. And the last 6 months was sparring training only. But what they didn't expect was what was coming next. The greatest threat they could imagine was on its way mid training month 9. And it's name was Magellan. With backup this time. The navy gave him the chance to earn his previous title back. They sent him with 2 admirals to fight off the new threat they where now calling the "Demonic Duo" Bubbers and Dewgrad. And with Dewgrad gone they where going to be much less prepared. At the least Franky now worked on the water towers for them making it possible for his wife to trigger their activation remotely anywhere on the island. And now begins the biggest island fight sense punk hazard.

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Sorry it was kind of short everyone. More than going to make up for it in the next chapter I promise. Leave a review if you feel the need and see you in the next chapter.


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